Thanks, WC. I've been working really hard to manage time and energy properly. I have learned that multiple short breaks can be really helpful, and also to not push them to longer than they need to be. So if I need to step away for a few minutes, then I can, and as soon as I feel like returning, I need to so that I can keep things moving forward. I think I have a sort of addiction to certain behaviors; that may sound weird but so far every time I push myself just a little beyond my comfort zone I find that I can function better. Like if I feel I need two hours to take a nap and relax and turn my brain off...but then I only needed 45 minutes...

I'm find flexibility is key, and it's not really an unreasonable amount of flexibility either. And as I suspected, stamina for work and personal projects is building up over time. I was worried that I was doomed to only being able to accomplish work, and not my personal projects that are more than just hobbies, also side businesses that are very important to me, just as important to me as professional work...but I am beginning to accomplish more and more. I just keep trying to add on a little at a time.

So if two weeks ago it was just to get 35 hours of billable hours completed, then this past week it was to go to the dog park at least every other day in addition to the billable hours as well as some time to work on my paintings...this weekend, I also managed to get in some music practice. Now I have music practice scheduled almost every day this coming week, and I'm also trying to add a few workouts beyond my daily hike.

I'm find I'm more and more able to get more out of the 24 hours in the day, but I still require regular breaks. They are shorter now, which is helpful, but I don't think I'd be able to do all this if I didn't work from home and literally could just walk to my sofa and lay down for 20 minutes then get back up and walk to my desk. It makes me think that all offices in the US should have cots or nice dark rooms for people to close their eyes and recharge for brief periods to increase efficiency and productivity!

In fact, when I think back on the most productive times of my life, when I was putting in a serious amount of hours in grad school and then when I was triathlon training, I had the ability to take short naps. In grad school, my office had a sofa, and I would nap when I had a break between classes. There was a break room in my office when I was triathlon training that had a sofa in it, and I would often take little naps on it too or I would go out to the park and sun myself on a blanket for 20 minutes.

So for now it's working, my expectations feel met, if not exceeding in some ways, and I'm also just trying not to expect too much. Sort of like, I will try XYZ to see if I can get all these things done, if that doesn't work, I 'll be disappointed but I will get back up and try something else.

Thanks!
Seesaw